1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an improved data processing system, and in particular, to a method and apparatus for managing the transfer of data. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method, apparatus, and computer instructions for managing email messages exchanged between users.
2. Description of Related Art
The Internet, also referred to as an “internetwork”, is a set of computer networks, possibly dissimilar, joined together by means of gateways that handle data transfer and the conversion of messages from a protocol of the sending network to a protocol used by the receiving network. When capitalized, the term “Internet” refers to the collection of networks and gateways that use the TCP/IP suite of protocols.
The Internet has become a cultural fixture as a source of both information and entertainment. Many businesses are creating Internet sites as an integral part of their marketing efforts, informing consumers of the products or services offered by the business or providing other information seeking to engender brand loyalty. Many federal, state, and local government agencies are also employing Internet sites for informational purposes, particularly agencies which must interact with virtually all segments of society such as the Internal Revenue Service and secretaries of state. Providing informational guides and/or searchable databases of online public records may reduce operating costs. Further, the Internet is becoming increasingly popular as a medium for commercial transactions.
Currently, the one commonly employed method of transferring data over the Internet is to employ the World Wide Web environment, also called simply “the Web”. Other Internet resources exist for transferring information, such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Gopher, but have not achieved the popularity of the Web. In the Web environment, servers and clients effect data transaction using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), a known protocol for handling the transfer of various data files (e.g., text, still graphic images, audio, motion video, etc.). The information in various data files is formatted for presentation to a user by a standard page description language, the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).
The Internet also is widely used to transfer applications to users using browsers. With respect to commerce on the Web, individual consumers and businesses use the Web to purchase various goods and services. In offering goods and services, some companies offer goods and services solely on the Web while others use the Web to extend their reach.
Another popular use of the Internet is for the exchange of electronic mail, also referred to as “email” messages. An email system typically involves a server-based mail program residing on a server computer to manage the exchange of email messages over one or more networks and a client-based mail program residing on the client to implement a mailbox that receives and holds the email messages for a user. Typically, these client-based programs also include a graphical user interface to enable a user to easily and conveniently open and read email messages in addition to creating new email messages.
Email is used both at home and work by many users. At home, email is a widespread form of communication that has quickly overtaken the “written” letter. In the work area, email is becoming increasingly important to the flow of information for business processes. Many workflow steps are required for the propagation of an email message, either as a “reply” or as a “forward” of the information. Each step in the workflow, after the creation of the initial email message, involves, for example, a user initiating a reply, adding or modifying content for the initial email message, and then sending the reply. A user may reply to an email message by either replying to the sender through using a “reply” option or reply to the sender and all of the recipients through the use of a “reply to all” option. The “reply to all” option is often used in the workflow process so that all of the participants in a discussion or exchange of information may see comments from the sender of a reply.
As a result, a user may receive multiple comments from different users for a single email message when that email message has been distributed to a number of different users. In some cases, a user may reply to a message without realizing that another user has made a reply that may change the content of the user's message. Each time a reply is made, a newer copy or version of the email message is generated. A new copy or version also is generated when a message is forwarded to a recipient. One key recurring problem in email systems, when used in a business process, is an inability for a user to ensure that the selected email message for propagation is the most recently available copy or version of the email message. Currently, a user is required to scan their “inbox” to verify that they have selected the correct version of the email message.
A user visually scanning an “inbox” to identify a most recent version of an email message may be difficult in some cases. For example, in some cases, a user may receive hundreds of email messages in a single day. Scanning the inbox is subject to user error in skipping or missing a message. Further, while composing a message, a reply may be received from another user that may affect the content of the message that the user is composing.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have an improved method, apparatus, and computer instructions for ensuring that actions taken on a document are applied to the most recent email message.